Double R Farm (Amish Country Soaps & Sundries)

Last night I spent some time looking around to see what is still growing well here on the farm. The Indian corn is stunning and vibrant, and I am wondering if the cooler weather has something to do with it. The tomatoes are starting to wind down, but I still see another crop of late bloomers hanging heavily on the vines waiting to ripen. We thankfully have not been effected by blight, and have had many to share with friends and neighbors. The pumpkins are turning orange and the winter squash is forming. The potatoes are almost ready for their final dig, and the beans are still producing. The cooler weather has some varieties slowing down, while others who love the cold begin to flourish.

Soon it will be time to turn the gardens over and allow them the rest they need before planting again in the spring. The leaves will be changing soon and autumn will quickly replace the heat of summer. What comes next I shudder to think. There is as always much work to be done on the farm and I know it will be enough to keep me warm. I can only hope that this winter is not nearly as cold as last year‘s . We did not get a single peach or even a blossom from our reliable trees this year. After speaking with many local peach growers I learned the weather was too cold for the trees last winter and froze the tiny buds right on the branches. Any peaches found here have all been trucked in from other places.

Each season brings with it new challenges as well as many new wonders. Early this morning I stepped out and noticed the beautiful starry sky . A cool, clear and crisp morning illuminated the most vibrant of stars. I stood there trying to remember where each constellation was and what it represented. For a brief moment in time I forgot the troubles that seem to be afflicting many just now. Sometimes a starry, starry sky is all you need to get motivated for the day.

Today is the first day of school for local learners here in Sugarcreek. It’s hard to believe that summer is coming to an end, especially since it’s only been lately that the weather has finally warmed up. The nights are getting cooler and soon it will be autumn. I watch with a neighbor as the school bus pulls up to take our children off to school and we both smile. It’s been a long summer. It’s not that we won’t miss our children, surely we will, but it’s time for us to get much of the chores we’ve put aside done.

We briefly run down the list of things we have planned for the day before I head back across the street as memories of earlier years flood my mind. I am amazed at how quickly the years have flown by. Wasn’t it only yesterday they were born?

More memories float around in my head; the numerous feedings, diaper changes, teaching them to walk and listening as they learned to talk seem like only yesterday. Then there were the many first days of school when we'd spend weeks shopping for clothes, shoes, supplies, lunch boxes and backpacks. It seemed to take forever to get them ready as we  filled their backpacks with school supplies along with our hopes and dreams for them.

Now they pack their own backpack, throw it over their shoulder and are gone in the blink of an eye unaware that still safely tucked inside are the hopes and dreams of their father and I. Even though one is now a Senior in high school and the other is a sturdy 6th grader it's hard not to be reflective on the first day of school.